1 - I reincarnated as a Cat nyaa~

001 I reincarnated as a Cat nyaa~

“I am a cat; but as of yet I have no name.” A sentence from the Natsume-sensei I admire is stuck in my head these days… Apparently, I was reborn as a cat. 1

I was stupid for believing in that devil (Goddess) who said I would be reborn as a human being. It’s been three months since I reincarnated as a cat… since that day when I thought I was born, but I was just being licked by a huge cat. Initially, I was surprised and inadvertently screamed, but afterwards, I was relieved because that cat turned out to be my mother. From then on, the shameful breastfeeding time awaited me. I was worried about not knowing what to do, but fortunately, I had two siblings, so I imitated them and managed to adapt and survive. I’m horrified when I think I would have to do this if I was reincarnated as a human. After the breastfeeding period ended, the next step was time for horrifying baby food. Meat that my mother chewed and softened. It has no taste and feels unpleasant, but I put up with it and just swallowed. Once you get used to it, you’ll enter the hell of eating small animals such as insects, frogs, and mice…

I endured these unbearable pains in order to meet that demon (goddess), Amaterasu, once again! Well, what should I do now…?

Before that, how do cats earn virtue? Would you lose virtue by taking a life to eat?

Leaving the complaints aside, this place seems to be a cave in a mountain. I’m still young, so I can’t travel far enough to confirm. I am curious about the completely black and completely white trees I have never seen before, but it might be because I am a cat. My family consists of Mother and two siblings. I have never seen my father. They have no names, so in my heart, I arbitrarily decided to call them Mother, Boycat, and Girlcat. Mother is several times the size of us, but I am still a child so that is probably why she feels that way to me. Speaking of how I communicate, it seems when I voice out my thoughts with “Nyaa Nyaa”, the information is transmitted perfectly. I was surprised that Cats could have conversations like this. It seems as if the words are directly transmitted into the mind, although that might be just what cats are like. The appearances of all 4 of us are pure white and apart from myself, the 3 of them are slim and look like beautiful cats. I am the only one who doesn’t resemble the others, but I keep telling myself it is because I have yet to see my reflection in a proper mirror and only by the reflection in a small stream. I still have many unanswered questions, but since I have met even a goddess before, I suppose I shouldn’t be too surprised by the biology of cats. I have experienced many happenings since I was born, but today my cat family lives in peace.

Boycat: “Hey, mom.”

Hmm? It seems Boycat wants to ask a question. He seems to have developed a sense of self recently, as I tend to see him asking questions these days. Well, what is it?

Boycat: “Why is it we all look similar, except for brother who looks rounder?”

Pfft! He finally pecked at the question I don’t want him to ask! Well, I have a body that is just a little easier to get fat, so it’s still okay.

Girlcat: “Hey Mom, I also have something to ask.”

Mother: “What is it?”

Girlcat: “Why does everyone only have one tail, but brother have two tails?”

Boycat: “Hey Hey, I also want to know why?”

*cough cough*…… personally, I am also curious about that. My appearance, when I sit down, looks like a snowman with cat ears sticking out, and could be mistaken for a mascot character. In addition to that, I have 2 tails. Isn’t this what you call a Nekomata? A kind of youkai…… When I was born, I thought that my mother looked like a monster cat, but I am 100% a monster cat. I was scared of asking about it, but I wonder what do my siblings think? Will I be bullied? Will I be chased out? I am in a pinch!

Mother: “That’s right, I was thinking about telling this story when you all are older but now is a good time as any.”

Siblings: “What what, what is it??”

Mother: “This is a story that my mother told me, about our ancestors”

Siblings: “What are ancestors?”

Mother: “It refers to the mother of Mom’s mother.”

Towards the siblings who are enraptured by Mother’s words, Mother begins recounting the story. Once upon a time, there was a long-lived cat in a certain place. When that cat grew two tails, he became so strong that no one could defeat him. As the head of the cats, he ruled the clowder and lived in peace.

Suddenly one day, the time came when that peace was threatened. The clowder was attacked by a large, very large monster, cats were being killed helplessly everywhere, and the clowder received catastrophic damage.

The one who confronted the monster alone was a white and round, two-tailed cat. Yes, it was that ancestor. The ancestor and the monster, for 3 days and 3 nights, fought a fierce battle, when the dust settled, both the ancestor and the monster died of their wounds.

The battle was so fierce, the forest was burnt, the earth was left cracked, and the surrounding terrain was ruined. The cats left that place where they couldn’t live anymore, the clowder began to disperse, and the mother of Mom’s mother began to move from place to place before settling here.

Siblings: “That ancestor is so cool!!”

Mother: “That’s right. Maybe this one is a reincarnation of his ancestor. He may look slightly different, but he’s definitely my dear child. So let’s get along.”

Siblings: “Yeah! Will get along~”

“Nya… (that’s good…)”

I became so happy that I rushed to hug my mom.

Mother: “Ara ara, you want to be spoiled~”

Boycat: “Ah!!”

Girlcat: “Not fair~~!”

Saying that my siblings also rushed to hug Mother, and after playing around, apart from me, they all fell asleep. What’s with that myth!! Did the forest burn? Will the ground tear? Is it a monster war?

The number of mysteries has increased leaving me worried…

Footnotes

For the curious, the sentence is from a famous book written by one of the Japanese literary greats Natsume Soseki sensei, “Wagahai wa Neko de aru”/ I am a Cat”